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Why You’ll Love My Recipe
Carbs, meat, and cheese! Just like a pierogi, this casserole packs all of those delicious flavours into one tasty mouthful. Serve this with your favourite vegetable dish for a satisfying and easy meal.
For more classic meal-inspired casseroles, why not make this Classic Chicken Divan? Or try this recipe for Classic Cheesy Chili Loaded Frito Pie instead? Serve any of these tasty casseroles with some Roasted Green Beans or Honey Butter Skillet Corn to round out the meal.
Reader Review
Holy cow!!!! Made this tonight and let me tell you…..yummmmmmmy!! It tasted like my grandma’s (Polish) pierogies!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe! It’s a keeper!!!
Karlynn’s Recipe Notes
- Skill Level: This recipe is easy to make, just toss everything into your slow cooker and let it go!
- Total Time: This will take about 2 hours and 30 minutes to make, but most of that is unsupervised slow cooking time.
- Variations: This simple recipe is easy to modify for your family’s personal preferences. You could add different types of meat, such as sliced kielbasa or cooked ham. You could try adding some cabbage or sauerkraut, or even go for a more Greek flavor by using spinach and feta. Play around and make something that works best for you.
- Tools For This Recipe: For this recipe, you’ll need a large pot, a large bowl, a small bowl, a large skillet, a potato masher, a large cookie sheet, a slow cooker, and a cheese grater.
What You’ll Need for Ingredients
Lasagna Noodles: This recipe calls for uncooked lasagna noodles. Double check the package label and be careful not to purchase the “ready-to-bake” variety or you may end up with a mushy mess.
Cheddar Cheese: Reach for an aged or sharp cheddar for this recipe, as the tanginess will help cut through the rich flavors of the other ingredients. You could also try a smoked variety or one with hot peppers or herbs mixed in.
Potatoes: Reach for your everyday baking potatoes for this recipe! The best options are low moisture, starchy varieties like Russets (also called Idaho potatoes. Thin-skinned, waxier potatoes don’t do as good a job as absorbing fat and butter.
How To Make Crockpot Lazy Pierogi Casserole
This is a quick overview of the recipe. The full list of ingredients and complete step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Cook the lasagna noodles according to the package instructions. Drain, rinse under cold water and set aside.
- Peel and dice potatoes. Boil in pot until soft and falling apart.
- Drain potatoes. In a large bowl, mash the potatoes with the butter, salt, pepper, and milk. Mix until smooth and then add the shredded cheese.
- In a small bowl, add onion salt to ricotta cheese. Set aside.
- Cook bacon in oven or in a skillet. Drain and cut into small pieces. Set aside.
- In a large skillet, fry sliced onions until soft. Set aside.
- Place 3 cooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of the slow cooker. Spread 1 cup of the ricotta cheese over the noodles. Add 1/3 of the potatoes, 1/3 of the bacon, and 1/3 of the onions, followed by 3 more lasagna noodles.
- Repeat the layering process. There will be no ricotta for the last layer.
- Cook on low in slow cooker for 2 hours.
Karlynn’s Tips and Tricks for Making Crockpot Lazy Pierogi Casserole
Melt My Heart: It might be tempting to use pre-shredded cheese for simple recipes like this one, but it’s better to grate your own! Pre-shredded cheeses have anti-caking agents added to keep the shreds from clumping together in the bag. While this doesn’t really impact how they act when you bake them as a topping, it can make them melt irregularly, leading to slightly unpleasant lumps.
Creamy Goodness: This recipe calls for Ricotta cheese because of its smooth, creamy texture, but if Ricotta is difficult to find or too pricy for your pocketbook, you can substitute it for an equivalent amount of drained cottage cheese! You’ll get the same creamy taste, but the curds will be a bit larger and more noticeable in the final dish.
Storage Instructions
Refrigerator: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in a moderate oven or 1 minute increments in the microwave.
Freezer: Fully cool this casserole before putting it in a freezer-safe, airtight container to keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat, let it thaw in the fridge overnight and bake it in your oven at 350°F until warmed through. Sprinkle some extra cheddar cheese on top before baking if you want a little extra goodness.
More Delicious Casserole Recipes
Looking for something rich and nutritious in pie form? Try this Tomato Pie.
Want something simple on a busy weeknight? Try some Quick Chicken and Noodles.
This Broccoli Rice Casserole is a new twist on a classic favorite.
There you go, folks. A delicious and easy way to get all the best parts of a pierogi in casserole-form. Try it and let me know what you think.
Happy Cooking!
Karlynn
Crock Pot Lazy Pierogi Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 9 lasagna noodles, uncooked , normal NOT no boiled noodles
- 8 medium baking potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
- ¼ cup milk
- ¼ cup butter
- 2 cup shredded old Cheddar cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 3 onions , chopped
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 cups low fat ricotta cheese
- ½ teaspoon onion salt
- 1 pound bacon
Instructions
- Cook the lasagna noodles according to the package instructions. Drain, rinse under cold water and set aside.
- Grease the inside of a large crockpot.
- Peel and dice the potatoes. Place in a large pot of water, bring to a boil and then cook until they fall apart when pierced with a fork.
- Drain the potatoes and place in a large bowl.
- Mash in the butter, salt, pepper and milk, and continue mashing the potatoes until smooth. Mix in the shredded Cheddar cheese
- Stir ½ tsp onion salt into the ricotta cheese and set aside.
- Place the bacon on a large foil lined cookie sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, until cooked but still soft (or cook in a pan on the stovetop).
- Slice the three onions and fry in a pan with the tablespoon of butter until soft.
- Cut the bacon with kitchen shears or cut it into smaller pieces with a knife.
- Place 3 lasagna noodles onto the bottom of the crockpot.
- Spread one cup of ricotta cheese on top of the noodles.
- Spread ⅓ of the potato cheese mixture on top of the ricotta.
- Spread one third of the bacon and one third of the onions on top of the potatoes.
- Place another three noodles on top and repeat layer.
- For the last layer, place the final three noodles on top, then potatoes and then bacon and onions, no ricotta cheese.
- Cook in the crockpot on low for 2 hours.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Katelyn Ford says
I don’t think there was really anything “lazy” about this! Lots of prep work before it goes in the slow cooker! We found it to be a little bland, but are enjoying experimenting with various condiments 🙂
Catherine A. McClarey says
No Eastern European ancestors on either side of my family, but my hometown is fairly close to Chicago, so frozen pierogies are readily available at the supermarket (as are stuffed Italian pastas such as ravioli and tortellini). Could frozen pierogies be turned into a casserole instead?
Paulette Aigner says
Sounds good but ALOT of prep work!
Jenneke says
Can this be made in the oven?
Linda says
Just wondering what is so easy about this? Seems like a lot of steps to me.
Rhonda says
Holy cow!!!! Made this tonight and let me tell you…..yummmmmmmy!! It tasted like my grandma’s (Polish) pierogies!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe! It’s a keeper!!!
Jeannine Parent says
Even America’s Test Kitchen agreed that cottage cheese is by far tastier than bland ricotta. So also say the Ukrainians in my family. 😄